High on the list this year was purchasing four .99 recycled, re-usable bags from Winn-Dixie so I could happily stop being asked "Paper or Plastic?" Occasionally I still end up with a few plastic shopping bags, but they do end up being used (mostly for trash liners.) I'm officially down to TWO plastic bag stockpiles.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
stuff I did to "go green" this year...and what still needs to be done
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Sometimes it's nice when the camera catches your best
A friend of Gretchen's took this picture at our Halloween "Belementals" show in New Orleans, November first.
And here is the video that went along with it... the back story being that initially my element was going to be "Destructive Wind," because I'm from Louisiana and it seemed appropriate. Well, I fully intended to use my new fan veilz (tm), but then my friend Kryss asked could she borrow my fan veilz, because..yes, you guessed it...that was the very prop she intended to use, but couldn't get a hold of any because they're usually on back-order. At any rate, I asked her what 'aspect'/element/music etc wasn't being portrayed and decided to do a Fire element piece with a veil. Terribly unoriginal of me - it's a hard pattern to break. At any rate, about 4 hours prior to the show while I was packing up to head to New Orleans, I put one veil in the bag...then I put another, and another until I finally stopped and asked myself what I was doing. I only needed one veil. But then the vision in my head was complete with sound and Technicolor, I would use multiple veils which would be thrown into the air to achieve "flame-like effects." Lo and behold, it worked. Not so sure it came across on film as well - but the people in the audience got the message. Oh - did I forget to mention that I called down Pele to accomplish the task? Well, She was there, in force, at least it felt that way.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
"Mommy, which one is healthier?"
Monday, while in the checkout line of my grocery store, another shopper pulled up in line behind me with her buggy and I heard her say, "Look, there are some chips down there."
I turned slightly to realize she was talking to her daughter, who looked to be around 7 or 8. The girl said, "where?" I pointed them out to her and she bent over to pick up a bag. There was an assortment.
The little girl reached down to grab some Cheetos and then pulled back and asked "Mommy, which one is healthier?" I'm not sure, but I really do think the question caught the woman off guard, because she said, "well, they have Funyons, you like Funyons." In my head I'm having a mental conversation with the little girl...'walk away,' I say, 'decide you don't want them...you really don't need them.'
Well, the kid actually picks up a couple of the bags, turns them over and starts looking at the nutritional charts on the back. (All I could think about was the story Matilda ,I had just re-watched the movie of less than a week ago.) I jumped for joy inside and said "SCORE!" I mean, if the kid's mom didn't have enough energy to care about reading the nutritional panels, I really have to think it was Divine intervention that allowed the kid to recall having seen her mother (at some point) or another adult do this. Who knows, maybe her teachers are on the ball and guided them to this action during a lesson?
At any rate, I really don't believe that the girl knew what she was looking for or was reading when she compared the nutritional panels, but it was a start. The hope that had not been there when the woman first pulled in behind me, that had drained when she said "you like Funyons," rebounded in spades and I thought...maybe these kids can hear God.

